Felix Baumgartner high altitude skydive

[natasha d]

hes attempting to break a record for the highest free fall (37km from the Earth's surface)
heres a link to a site about Joe Kittinger (who holds the current record at 31.3km)
http://testblog-testblog123456-testblog.blogspot.in/2011/11/dispatches-blog-supersonic-man-col-joe.html

 

[Danger]

You just did...

 

[Astronuc]

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/sl...ecord-setting-skydiver-plans-23-mile-15546673

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felix_Baumgartner

http://news.yahoo.com/record-seeking-skydiver-makes-13-mile-test-jump-233204849.html

Baumgartner lifted off Thursday[March 15] for a test jump from Roswell, N.M., aboard a 100-foot helium balloon. He rode inside a pressurized capsule to 71,581 feet — 13.6 miles — and then jumped. He parachuted to a safe landing, according to project spokeswoman Trish Medalen.

He's aiming for nearly 23 miles this summer. The record is 19.5 miles.
. . . .
He's caught NASA's attention, even though space officially begins much higher at an even 100 kilometers, 328,084 feet or 62 miles.

Kittinger is now 83 and one of Baumgartner's chief advisers. A former NASA flight director directs the medical team: Dr. Jonathan Clark, whose astronaut wife, Laurel, was killed aboard space shuttle Columbia in 2003. The accident led Clark to become an expert in spacecraft emergency escape.
. . . .

Some video on BBC - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17410044

Video of Roswell jump
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9147907/Supersonic-edge-of-space-base-jumper-Felix-Baumgartner-completes-Roswell-test-jump.html


RedBullStratos page - http://www.redbullstratos.com/

 

[natasha d]

You just did...

yea.. i kinda did.
I think i should start another one: how does one delete a pointless thread in PF?
hmm..
its just that the idea of throwing yourself to Earth at 37km with nothing but a pressure suit (and a parachute that only opens when you break the sound barrier) seems fantastic

 

[natasha d]

RedBullStratos page - http://www.redbullstratos.com/

nice link, thanks!

The uninflated suit, without the helmet and visor, weighs approximately 28 pounds. The helmet weighs about 8 pounds.

37 lbs?! they said a thin pressure suit

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

could somebody add a reply to this thread on Felix Baumgart

 

[Danger]

yea.. i kinda did.
I think i should start another one: how does one delete a pointless thread in PF?
hmm..

It's not at all pointless. Contrarywise, it's quite interesting. I was just making a funny about your choice of phrasing. Coincidentally, the first that I heard of this was on "Daily Planet" an hour or so before reading your post.

 

[Adyssa]

I've seen the Joe Kittinger video on YouTube about 100 times, it's amazing :)

I'm happy to hear about this, and I look forward to seeing some good footage from the big jump!

 

[feathermoon]

Will he have to breathe oxygen for 2 hours to prep for this like the current record holder, or will his pressure suit keep him from getting decompression sickness? I'm fully intrigued by the idea of a astronaut being able to make reentry in only a suit, but a long prep time detracts from the usefulness somewhat (though starting from space and coming down isn't the same as going up first unsheltered).